


Metal Hearts

by EgoStorm



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Angst, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Psychological, Robot AU, Tagging angst because people told me it was, angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-22
Updated: 2016-05-22
Packaged: 2018-06-10 02:25:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6934393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EgoStorm/pseuds/EgoStorm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wonwoo lost his lover years ago, but putting his faith in current technology, he decided to purchase a robot replica of him. The robot is different from how Mingyu used to be, but Wonwoo has started to gain feelings for him regardless. The bad news? All robots come with a warning from the company that makes them, that robots are not made to love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Metal Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> Edited 160601 to enter an AFF contest

_ It was a completely white room, and Wonwoo was it’s only occupant. There was nothing around but blinding bright white. Wonwoo spun around, trying to get a sense of where he was, but his location soon became irrelevant when a man suddenly appeared before him. Wonwoo could see his smile, but for some reason he couldn’t see his eyes. Even so, he recognized him immediately, sighing in relief that he was there with him. The man reached for Wonwoo’s face, softly placing his hand on his cheek. Wonwoo leaned into the familiar touch, closing his eyes as the man spoke. _

 

_ “I love you, Jeon Wonwoo.” _

 

Wonwoo gasped as he woke up, head turning immediately in anticipation to look at the other side of the bed. He half expected his lover to be there, as his dream gave him the tiniest bit of hope. Of course, it was false hope, as that side of the bed was cold and empty.

 

“Mingyu…”

 

It had been a few years since he lost him. When Wonwoo heard the news that he jumped in front of a car to save a distracted boy, he prayed that Mingyu would be okay. He was in critical condition when Wonwoo received the call, which meant that he was still alive. However, when Wonwoo reached the hospital, it had been too late. Mingyu was gone, as was Wonwoo’s reason to live. 

 

He had no reason to live, but when it came to making a vow with death, he just couldn’t die.

 

He remembered as he rode the elevator to the top floor of his apartment building, just after coming back from the hospital. He watched impatiently as the floor number increased, and when it finally reached the 26th floor, he hastily climbed up the stairs to the roof. He was determined to give up his life at that very moment. The day Mingyu died, so would he. They had never made such a promise, but Wonwoo thought it would be a form of betrayal to live and leave Mingyu behind. He knew Mingyu would have done the same. They were made for each other, after all. They had a pact made by fate, that they would live together and die together.

 

He opened the door to the roof and determinedly walked to the nearest edge. The strong winds barely held him back from lifting himself up on the ledge. Now all he had to do was close his eyes, lean forward, and let gravity do the rest. 

 

But he made the fatal mistake of looking down. 

 

All he wanted to see was how far the drop would have been, but he probably would have been better off not knowing. That way, he would have gone without hesitation. But when he looked down, and saw just how small everything looked, the idea of falling suddenly seemed so daunting. He could barely recognize the moving specs as people. Or were they cars? He knew he was high up, but that didn’t completely register until he saw the scene below him. If he jumped, just how long would the fall be? Would he regret his decision when he was halfway down to Earth? What if he changed his mind before it all ended? How long would he have to endure the terrifying inescapable ride to the death?

 

When so many thoughts rushed into his head, he faltered. He couldn’t do it. Even though he wasn’t necessarily afraid of death, he was afraid of the act of dying. He was afraid of having to force his bodily functions to cease unnaturally. Painfully. He was afraid of the pain. He didn’t want to live in a world without Mingyu, but he didn’t want to die a painful death. Even though it meant he would be all alone in the world, he stepped down from the ledge, regretful tears rolling down his cheeks. It was a day he would never be able to forget. The day he lost his love, and the day he betrayed him as well.

 

After several years passed, Wonwoo could say that he adjusted to living on his own, even if he hadn’t gotten entirely used to the loneliness. Every day he lived a dull life, his body moving to habit more than will. He moved only to survive, because he no longer had the motivation to live. He was alive physically, but the life in him was long gone. His life became nothing but a mere routine. Wake up and get ready to go to work, take the subway to the building in which he worked, answer to customer’s calls throughout the day, take the subway back, stop by the store for food, and walk home. He worked as a receptionist at a hotel, so he had to face numerous people throughout the day. He gained the skill to act friendly and cheerful at work, but once his shift was over, the cheerful mask was gone.

 

And that became the daily mundane life of Jeon Wonwoo.

 

As usual, Wonwoo walked down the street to go home from the grocery store. He carried a plastic bag with his left hand, full of nothing but cheap, processed food that was convenient to make. He didn’t know what compelled him to do so, but that day, he turned his head to see the wall of advertisements that were usually right outside the store. He normally ignored everything on his way home, but not today. He noticed a particular advertisement, which stood out from the others. It had striking colors that drew him to the poster in the first place, but the contents of the poster were what kept his attention.

 

It was a sale on customizable, humanoid robots. Wonwoo was aware of the existence of these robots. They came into the market approximately a year or two ago, and have integrated into human society. They were programmed to act and speak just like humans, and were in fact hard to distinguish from humans. There are a few things, besides the physical characteristics, that made robots different. Their personalities, for instance. Robots show emotion that they are programmed to show, but as convincing as they may be, they don’t actually feel these emotions. Of all of the emotions, they can show most of them, but robotic companies left out more negative emotions, such as anger, sadness, and jealousy. These emotions were deemed as useless for a robot, and omitting them made customers feel more at ease.

 

The only visible features that distinguishes them from humans are their eyes, which are made to be golden. Their eye color was a regulatory law passed by the government in order for people to be able to tell robots apart. This law was passed in response to the citizens’ growing discomfort in being unable to tell who was and who wasn’t a robot. Technology has made it so that these robots were entirely capable of taking over human jobs, but again, people were not comfortable with robots in the workplace. The people were either prejudiced against robots being used for anything other than personal enjoyment, or they didn’t completely trust that robots would not malfunction. This was understandable since they were still relatively new to the market.

 

Wonwoo looked over the poster closely. The sale was ending soon. It seems the sale was to introduce customization to robots, as they were previously all premade. While the price was steep, the idea did interest Wonwoo. He hadn’t thought about it before, but thinking about it now, he wondered if it would be possible to recreate his lost lover into a robot. That way, it would be like Mingyu came back. Wouldn’t the price be worth it then?

 

_ Well, it’s not like I was saving for anything in particular. _

 

He took out his phone with his right hand and steadied it in front of the advertisement. He snapped a picture of the poster, and then looked at it once more through the screen. He never splurged on anything, since he no longer had many desires. It wouldn’t hurt to splurge on something for once, right?

 

He pocketed his phone after confirming that he had a clear shot, and then walked home. He kept taking out his phone to review the information on the poster, picking out as many fine details as he could to verify that this was what he wanted.

 

As soon as he got through the door of his apartment, he took off his shoes, placed the plastic bags on the kitchen counter, rushed to his computer, and pulled up the website for the robot company, the Pledis Robotics Company. He was lead to a colorful homepage, much like the poster he had seen. He also saw the button that took him to the new robot customization page. He clicked on it, and the first thing that popped up was information on the company’s robots. There were some FAQs listed, and Wonwoo skimmed through them. When he clicked the button to continue, it asked for a visual of the desired robot. He pulled up some old, but treasured pictures of Mingyu, and uploaded them. He made sure to upload pictures with various angles, and of close ups and body shots. If possible, he wanted the robot to be as close to the real Mingyu as possible. Then, there were questions about characteristics. Of the options listed, he tried to get the robot’s personality to be a close match as well. He wanted the robot to be funny like Mingyu was. He wanted the robot to love cooking and cleaning as much as Mingyu did. He wanted the robot to be as dorky was Mingyu was. He wanted the robot to be as charming as Mingyu was. He wanted the robot to be like Mingyu in every way, but the most important thing was that he wanted the robot to love Wonwoo the way Mingyu did.

 

And maybe Wonwoo would be able to love the robot the same way.

 

Wonwoo finished the customization options, and all that was left was confirmation and payment. He looked at the total and wondered if it would really be worth it. Of course, it wouldn’t be the real Mingyu, but how much comfort would he get with someone that was just like him? It may not be the real Mingyu, but it would be as if it were.

 

His mouse hovered over the confirmation button. He thought about what it would be like. 

 

_ Wouldn’t it be just like old times? Wouldn’t that be worth it? _

 

He clicked the button.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

When the doorbell rang, Wonwoo knew that there was only one thing it could be. He never had guests, as a result from not having friends. The only reason he ever heard the doorbell was for a delivery of some sort. He waited so long for this particular one. Three months of an agonizing wait, but it was finally here.

 

Light thuds of his feet contacting floor could be heard as he hurried to the front door. He unlocked and opened it quickly, and was greeted by a delivery man. Beside the man was his long-awaited robot, being transported by a dolly. The robot was so life-like that Wonwoo stared for a bit. It looked as if Mingyu was sleeping while standing up on the dolly. It was just as beautiful as Mingyu was, so peacefully resting upright. It’s hair was the same rich brown, brushing over its forehead softly, and its lips were a light pink, as kissable as Wonwoo remembered. Its shoulders were the right amount of broad, its collarbones were delicate, but noticeable, and it was admirably tall in height. Its skin was a healthy glow of light bronze, as if kissed by the sun. Wonwoo’s eyes trailed down its features, in absolute awe of its beauty.  He couldn’t take his eyes off of it. 

 

“Hello, I’m from Pledis Robotics. I have an order for Jeon Wonwoo?”

 

He snapped out of his daze to look at the delivery man, who was looking at a clipboard.

 

“Yes, sir. That’s me.”

 

“I just need you to sign this paper, please.”

 

The man handed Wonwoo the clipboard that held a small piece of paper. He signed his name at the X on the bottom and eagerly handed the clipboard back. 

 

“Thank you. Let me just activate this guy real quick and then I’ll be on my way.”

 

The man took out a device that was hanging on his belt, and then stood in front of the doll. He held the device against the robot’s closed, left eye, and held down a button for three seconds. The device beeped, and the robot opened his eyes.

 

The delivery man then handed Wonwoo a small ring.

 

“This is for you. You need to wear this for the robot to recognize you as its owner. And also,” he took out a small pamphlet from his bag. “Here’s the instruction manual. I would read over it before handling him. There’s not much on there, but there’s some important information you should know. If you have any questions, feel free to call the number on the pamphlet.”

 

As Wonwoo slipped on the ring, the man then pushed the robot off of the dolly, and the robot landed gracefully on his feet. He seemed to be alive already.

 

“Thank you, sir.”

 

“Have a good one.”

 

“You too.”

 

When the man was gone, Wonwoo pulled the robot inside and then closed the door. He looked at the pamphlet to skim over the text, noting anything that was bolded. It had information on how to give the robot a name. It also said that robots could not eat, and should not eat human food, and how to charge it overnight. It mentioned that robots were water-resistant, and could handle even showers, but should not be placed in a pool. It basically contained information on how to maintain the robot. He figured he could read the details later, but a small red exclamation point near the end of the pamphlet caught his attention. It was a warning sign, and it said the following:

 

_ Robots are not made to love _

 

He read the sentence once more to ensure that he read it correctly the first time, and when he still couldn’t accept the words, he read it again. The words made Wonwoo’s heart sink. What was the point of all of this when the robot wouldn’t be able to love him? It was the whole reason he bought the giant piece of metal in the first place. Mingyu wasn’t Mingyu if he didn’t love Wonwoo, so there was no way this robot could be him. Wonwoo looked at the last page of the pamphlet to search for the company phone number, and when he did, he dialed it into his phone immediately.

 

There were a few rings before an automated voice answered. It prompted Wonwoo to press numbers on his phone depending on the reason he called, and then to identify what product he was inquiring about. After he did, he could hear music as he was put on hold, and he tapped his foot in impatience. It didn’t take long for a live person to pick up.

 

“Pledis Robotics, how can I assist you?”

 

“Hi, I have a question on this information pamphlet on how to take care of my robot. It says here that robots are not made to love?”

 

“Ah, yes. That was placed there because we’ve received too many complaints about people's’ robots not loving them back. You should be aware that, as human-like as our robots are, it’s only a machine. Their emotions are programed, and so they cannot love in the same way humans can. We warn people so that they don’t fall in love with their robot.”

 

“I’m sorry, but if my robot can’t love me, then it’s useless. How can I return it?”

 

“I’m sorry, sir, but all sales on customizable robots are final.”

 

“What?”

 

“Unfortunately, we can only take back our mass-made products. It was stated in the fine print in the order page on our website. I’m sorry for the inconvenience. Is there anymore more I can help you with today?”

 

“Oh… no.”

 

“Have a wonderful day, and thank you for shopping with Pledis Robotics.”

 

_ -beep- _

 

Wonwoo ended the call and stood blankly for a while. He thought about the call, and as he did he became more riled. When he felt like his anger had nowhere else to go, he aggressively threw the pamphlet on the floor. Nothing was going the way it was supposed to. After all the hope he built up, it was all for naught. He didn’t even take another glance at the robot before he stormed to his bedroom and slammed the door. The robot could rust to destruction if it couldn’t love him.

 

He sat down on his bed and pulled his hair in frustration. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. He had only just gotten the robot, after so many months of waiting, and now he finds out that it can’t do the one thing he intended for it to. The rest of its traits were of minor importance, but if was lacking the most important trait. Wonwoo laid down and stared at the ceiling and watched as the reflected light on the wall flickered from the rotation of the ceiling fan. The repetitive motion calmed him down somewhat. He sighed when he realized that having a useless robot meant that he would have to return to his dull and empty lifestyle.

 

He heard a click that told him that someone was entering the room, and he knew that it was the robot. The door cracked open, and the robot peeped his head in. Wonwoo couldn’t help but feel his heart flutter at the sight. The robot really did look like Mingyu, and it almost tricked him for a moment into thinking that somehow Mingyu was back.

 

“May I come in?”

 

Immediately, Wonwoo recognized that the voice was wrong. It wasn’t Mingyu’s voice. It was slightly deeper and rougher, and didn’t have the same quality as the human Mingyu. But for some reason, it affected Wonwoo in a similar way that Mingyu’s had.

 

Wonwoo sighed. “Yeah, go ahead.”

 

It felt weird that he was having a conversation with a robot. It didn’t seem much different than a conversation with a human. He wondered if this Mingyu could at least be his companion if he couldn’t act as his lover. As unsatisfying as that would be, Wonwoo couldn’t think of any other option.

 

The robot sat down on the bed softly.

 

“Did I do something wrong? Are you mad at me?”

 

He pouted as he said the words, and it was the exact face that Wonwoo was always weak to. It was the same face that never failed to make Wonwoo forgive the human Mingyu, no matter how mad he was at him before.

 

“N-no.”

 

“Then, why are you upset? Tell me.”

 

His voice wasn’t at all like Mingyu’s but why did it seem to have an affect on him? Was it because of his face?

 

“It’s nothing.”

 

The robot Mingyu stood up and abruptly walked out of the room. Wonwoo could hear rattling of the kitchen cupboards and worried about what the robot was doing. He sat up on the bed and listened more intently at the sounds, but they quickly stopped. He heard a single chopping noise, and then another, and then another. Was the robot cooking? Wonwoo felt a tightness in his chest. The nostalgic sounds were making him feel a bit shaken, and he wasn’t quite sure what to do about it.

 

While he was engrossed in his nostalgic thoughts, the door opened once again, and the robot Mingyu walked in with a plate of neatly cut apples. He offered them to Wonwoo, and Wonwoo hesitantly accepted one. 

 

Wonwoo looked up at the robot, who smiled brightly at him. He chuckled slightly when he noted that even the robot’s teeth were the same as Mingyu’s, slightly crooked in a way that accentuated his canines. He couldn’t deny that he was already forming a soft spot for the robot, just because of his appearance. 

 

He sighed. He already made the purchase, and he couldn’t return it. All purchases were final. He decided he should just accept the robot into his home.

 

Wonwoo patted the bed beside him. 

 

“Sit,” he said.

 

The robot complied.

 

Wonwoo turned his body to face the robot. He was already wearing the ring on his right pinky, so he brought his right hand up to the robot’s face. As he brought the ring closer to the robot’s left eye, the robot closed his eyes. Wonwo then said, “Program name. Kim Mingyu.”

 

The robot’s eye lit up a soft yellow through his eyelid, and he spoke in a more monotoned voice. “Program name, Kim Mingyu. Confirm?”

 

“Confirm.”

 

“Name registered as Kim Mingyu.”

 

The eye returned to normal, and so did the robot’s manner of speech. As Wonwoo dropped his hand to his side, Mingyu opened his eyes.

 

“I’m Mingyu. What’s your name?” he asked with a smile.

 

Wonwoo smiled back. “I’m Wonwoo.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Wonwoo thought that having Mingyu around would be just like how it was when the real Mingyu was around. To his disappointment, he eventually realized that it wasn’t. The new Mingyu was everything Wonwoo filled out in the personality tab while customizing him. At least, that was the impression Wonwoo had at first. He soon discovered that something was very wrong. 

 

He didn’t notice it at first. He was distracted by the fact that Mingyu was back in his life. It didn’t matter so much that this Mingyu wasn’t real. He was back, and Wonwoo finally felt lively again. His days no longer seemed monotonous and bland, and after so long, he found reason to live, and not just be alive. 

 

Wonwoo found more happiness with this new Mingyu than he initially expected. Mingyu enjoyed cooking and often made delicious meals for Wonwoo, since Mingyu himself couldn’t eat. When Wonwoo made jokes, Mingyu would laugh along and joke with him. When Wonwoo wanted to watch a movie, Mingyu would sit with him to watch it. It was just like the human Mingyu was never gone.

 

However, it wasn’t until they were working on a project together that Wonwoo noticed that there was a major flaw to this Mingyu.

 

Wonwoo bought a ‘build your own castle’ kit as a fun project for him and Mingyu to do together. When he randomly passed the kit at the store, it suddenly reminded him that he used to do fun projects with Mingyu from time to time, and so he didn’t hesitate to buy it. The two never perfected their model-making skills, but the point was for the fun rather than the finished product. Neither one of them were made to be painters, sculptors, or architects, but they always had fun trying.

 

Wonwoo smiled to himself at the memories as he walked through the front door after coming back from the store.

 

“Mingyu, I’m back!”

 

Mingyu had been dusting the blinds when Wonwoo came in, but immediately dropped his task to greet him.

  
“Welcome home.”

 

“Are you busy?”

 

The robot walked to the supply closet to put away the duster.

 

“Nope. What’s up?”

 

“Come here.”

 

Wonwoo held the boxed kit behind his back and waited for Mingyu to come closer before revealing it.

 

“What is it?”

 

With a bright smile, Wonwoo showed him the box he was hiding.

 

“Ta-dah! Let’s make our own castle!”

 

Mingyu laughed as he took the box from Wonwoo.

 

“This looks pretty challenging. Do you think we can do this?”

 

Wonwoo winked. “It doesn’t hurt to try.”

 

They sat down on on the floor besides the coffee table, and Wonwoo opened the box. When he did, his excited expression turned into one of horror. He looked at Mingyu in a slight panic, because the contents of the box were nothing more than a countless number of miniscule wooden bricks, no larger than a dime. There was no building blueprints or instructions. Just the blocks of wood.

 

“What do we do?”

 

“What do you mean? What’s wrong with it?”

 

“Mingyu… there’s no way we can make anything even close to a castle with this… This kit sucks… no wonder it was so cheap...”

 

Mingyu dumped the wooden pieces onto the coffee table and started picking up the pieces.

 

“Hey, weren’t you the one that said it didn’t hurt to try?”

 

The robot inspected a block of wood. 

 

“I think we’re going to need glue. Can you go find some?”

 

Wonwoo stared at the robot incredulously, but eventually gave in. He stood up to search for glue.

 

“If you’re up for it, then I guess we can give it a shot. Don’t cry about it when we end up with a messy pile of glue and wooden blocks. Wait here, I’ll go look for the glue.”

 

He went to scavenge the house for glue, not remembering the last time he used it. He searched the kitchen first, and then some random drawers in the bedroom. He found it in one of the drawers and went back to Mingyu, who had, in that short time, organized some of the wooden blocks.

 

Wonwoo suddenly had an idea.

 

“Hey, what if we have a competition? Let’s see who can make the better castle. Loser gets a forehead flick. How about it?”

 

The robot smirked.

 

“You’re on.”

 

The two sat down on the floor to make their own respective castles, only interacting to ask for the only bottle of glue that they had. The were facing away from each other so that neither would get ideas from the other. Wonwoo decided to go for a simple castle that was rectangular in shape and had circular towers on each corner. He wouldn’t try to be so detailed as to make windows or an entrance. He knew he wouldn’t have the skills for that. He started by making a perimeter of blocks with the shape he was going for. Then, he glued a layer of blocks on top of the initial blocks. Then he glued another layer of blocks on top of that and continued to make the walls taller and taller.

 

The blocks weren’t stacked perfectly, because the layers of glue weren’t completely even, so the castle began to form a tilted shape. The glue was messy, and the blocks were stacked crookedly, but it was generally what he wanted it to be, more or less. He finished with a small castle that was about the size of a real life brick. It was a bit unsightly, but he was proud that he was able to finish some sort of building. He had a feeling that Mingyu wouldn’t even have a finished product. Wonwoo was always slightly better at these projects, after all.

 

“Hey, Mingyu. Are you done yet?”

 

“Hmm… Not yet. Give me a few more minutes.”

 

Just as he thought. Mingyu wasn’t finished yet, which probably meant that he was struggling to finish, or he messed up horribly and was trying to fix it. Wonwoo smiled as he admired his own finished work, fanning it to help the glue dry more quickly.

 

“Okay, I’m done!” the robot exclaimed.

 

“Huh? Already? That wasn’t even a minute.”

 

“I just wanted to add the finishing touches.”

 

“Well, then I guess we can judge them then.”

 

Wonwoo stood up, and Mingyu did as well. Mingyu turned around first and saw Wonwoo’s work. Unexpectedly, the robot burst out laughing.

 

“It’s crooked! Oh man, I so won this bet!”

 

Wonwoo slapped him on the arm when he wouldn’t stop laughing.

 

“Yeah, right. I’m sure yours doesn’t even look like a castle.”

 

He turned around to see Mingyu’s… castle. It was a castle. A beautifully built, intricately detailed castle. It was perfectly lined, perfectly even, and just… perfect. It  _ looked _ like a downscaled model of a real castle, only without flags or drawstring bridges. Wonwoo’s smile disappeared from his face, but not because he lost the bet. It was because the real Mingyu would never have been able to make anything as beautiful as that. Never in his life would he have been able to pull off such a feat.

 

No one beat Mingyu when it came to clumsiness. No one. So how did Mingyu build such a beautiful creation? Wonwoo tried thinking back to the questionnaire he filled out for his robot customization. Hadn’t he written that the robot should be a bit clumsy? Why was this feature missing? Was it possible, then, that other features weren’t added?

 

“Ha, I win. A forehead flick for Jeon Wonwoo, it is!”

 

Mingyu celebrated with a little dance and nudged Wonwoo, bragging about his win, but Wonwoo didn’t budge.

 

“What is this?”

 

Mingyu stopped his cheerful dance in puzzlement.

 

“Huh?”

 

“You’re not supposed to be able to make something so nice…”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“This isn’t right.”   
  
“What isn’t right?”

 

Why hadn’t he noticed it before? The robot was close to the human Mingyu was, but he was  _ too perfect. _ He didn’t drop things all the time like the real Mingyu had. He didn’t bump into counters and chairs every other day like the real Mingyu had. He didn’t occasionally burn rice because he forgot about it like the real Mingyu had. To Wonwoo, the real Mingyu had become perfect in his eyes.

 

Which meant that the robot was the one that was flawed.

 

“... You’re not Mingyu.”

 

The robot blinked in confusion.

 

“I  _ am _ Mingyu.  _ You  _ named me.”

 

“But this is all wrong!”

 

“I don’t understand-”

 

“You’re supposed to act like Mingyu!”

 

“But… I am… Mingyu?”

 

“NO, YOU’RE WRONG!”

 

From the built up frustration, Wonwoo picked up his ugly, crooked castle from the floor, still unstable from the wet glue. He threw it down harshly against Mingyu’s castle, and both of them crumbled to pieces. He looked at the mess on the floor, both castles longer having a shape. He watched the pile of wood blocks and glue and felt much more content at what he saw.

 

“There. That’s more like it. That’s the way it should be.”

 

“... is it?”

 

The robot blinked innocently. Wonwoo’s anger and frustrations simmered down at the face Mingyu made. He noted how Mingyu was trying to understand the situation and realized that the robot often heeded Wonwoo’s commands. It gave him a sense of relief, and he smiled gently at the robot.

 

_ That’s right. He’s just a robot. And he’s my robot. He can change the way I tell him to. _

 

“Yeah, that’s the way it should be. Don’t worry, if you get something wrong, we can fix it together.”

 

_ We’ll work together to turn you into the real Mingyu. _

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

“Mingyu, let’s watch a movie together.”

 

It was a weekend, which meant that Wonwoo didn’t have to go to work. Even though it was still decently bright outside, Wonwoo was in the mood to watch a movie. Maybe several. He just wanted to relax with Mingyu all day.

 

“Sure,” the robot replied as he hopped onto the couch next to Wonwoo. “What do you want to watch?”

 

“Hmm… pick something.”

 

“How about a scary movie?”

 

“You don’t like scary movies, remember?”

 

“Oh, really?”

 

“Pick something else. Or actually, I’ll pick one.”

 

Wonwoo clicked on the search bar and entered a movie title.

 

“The Avengers?” Mingyu asked curiously.

 

“It’s your favorite.”

 

“Ah. It looks pretty cool.”

 

Wonwoo clicked the play button, and the introduction to the movie began. It started full of action from the very beginning, and Wonwoo was immediately immersed. He leaned back into the couch to get in a more comfortable position. He watched the TV screen flicker, as intense actions scenes were unravelled one after the other. Out of habit, he leaned to the side onto Mingyu’s shoulder.

 

He didn’t expect Mingyu’s shoulder to be as hard as it was, but he should have anticipated it, since Mingyu was made of metal. He tried snuggling up the the robot, but the robot didn’t adjust to Wonwoo’s movements.

 

“Mingyu, I’m trying to get comfortable here. Can’t you lean back a little more?”

 

“Oh, sure.”

 

The robot conceded to his request, and Wonwoo was able to arrange himself better. Wonwoo turned his head back to the screen, but his attention was still on Mingyu. He slowly brought his hand to Mingyu’s and grabbed it gently. When the robot didn’t move, he tightened his grip. Since Mingyu didn’t reciprocate, he became slightly irritated, but brushed the feeling aside. The robot was probably too occupied with the movie to notice. Mingyu  _ was _ the type of person to turn his full attention to one thing at a time. It was the reason for his clumsiness.

 

The movie was full of movement and racing plotlines, but after about an hour, Wonwoo felt himself getting sleepy. Action movies were more of Mingyu’s thing, after all. He was more into romances, but today, he wanted to share what Mingyu enjoyed. Unfortunately, his body wanted to sleep, even if Wonwoo himself wanted to stay awake. He closed his eyes for a bit, but opened them when he realized they were closed. He tried to keep his eyes open, but unwillingly felt them close again. The last thing he remembered was one of many fight scenes before he drifted off.

 

“Wonwoo.”

 

Wonwoo heard the deep voice. It was familiar, but there was something off about it.

 

“Mingyu?”

 

He opened his eyes to credits rolling up a black screen, and then looked up at the figure beside him. It was Mingyu, but when he saw golden eyes staring back at him, he realized that it wasn’t the Mingyu he unconsciously hoped for.

 

“Sorry I didn’t realize you fell asleep. The movie was pretty intense.”

 

Wonwoo yawned, and it was only then that he realized that he was still holding onto the robot’s hand. That meant that the robot hadn’t let go for the entire duration of the movie, and that made Wonwoo a bit happy.

 

“Don’t worry about it. We’ve already watched it a ton of times together.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“It’s okay if you don’t remember. We can just do everything all over again and create new memories.”

 

“... if you say so.”

 

Wonwoo huddled even closer to the robot.

 

“Let’s do something together right now. How about baking? We used to bake together every once in a while.”

 

“I don’t know if I have confidence in my baking skills. Cooking, sure. But baking?”

 

“Well, you should, because you make the best cream puffs in the world.”

 

“I don’t know how to make cream puffs…”

 

“You will. I’ll help you.”

 

Wonwoo smiled at Mingyu before standing up, still holding onto the robot’s hand. He tugged at it to suggest that he wanted Mingyu to stand up too, and when he did, he led them both to the kitchen. He took out his phone from his pocket with his free hand, and tapped onto the screen.

 

“Let’s pull up a recipe to work with, just to make sure we don’t mess anything up.”

 

“You want to make them  _ now _ ”

 

“Sure, why not?”

 

Mingyu shrugged. “I don’t know, wouldn’t you want to have lunch first or something?”

 

“Oh,” Wonwoo said as he looked at the time on his phone. It was already late in the afternoon, and he hadn’t eaten anything after breakfast. “I’m not that hungry for food. Let’s just make these, okay?”

 

“Okay. Um, how do we start?”

 

Wonwoo scrolled down the web page on his phone to look through the recipe.

 

“We can start with getting the ingredients.”

 

And so, as Wonwoo named off the list of ingredients, Mingyu hunted the kitchen to fetch what they needed. When all the necessary ingredients were gathered, Wonwoo started reading the instructions, and Mingyu followed his commands. Wonwoo watched as the robot worked, mixing the dough over a stovetop. Mingyu was focused on following directions carefully, so his back was to Wonwoo, who reveled at the scene. 

 

Wonwoo smiled affectionately to himself, since things were finally started to go back to the way they were before. He approached Mingyu silently, and surprised him with a backhug. However, the robot resisted as soon as he felt Wonwoo’s touch, and struggled slightly to get out of his grasp.

 

“Wonwoo, wait, the dough! It’s going to burn!”

 

Unhappy with the robot’s reaction, the boy held him tighter.

 

“Let it burn. I want to do this right now.”

 

“I can’t just let it burn, all of our hard work will go to waste,” Mingyu said as he carefully tried to pull Wonwoo’s arms away.

 

“I don’t care. We can always make it again.”

 

“But-”

 

“I’m not letting go.”

 

“Wonwoo-”

 

“No!”

 

Wonwoo felt his frustrations build up, since Mingyu wasn’t giving him the attention he wanted. Even if he loved baking, Wonwoo should always be his priority. They were made for each other, so it shouldn’t be any other way.

 

He pushed Mingyu out of the way before closing his eyes and swinging his arm outward with as much strength as he could muster, to get rid of what was keeping Mingyu’s attention from him. When his hand hit the side of the pot, he immediately felt it burn his skin, but the contact didn’t last for long. An echoing thud came from the pot bouncing on the floor. The dough scattered across the wooden floor, but it satisfied Wonwoo, since it meant that Mingyu could focus his attention on him. He didn’t notice how red his hand was until Mingyu pointed it out.

 

The robot grabbed his wrist and pulled it to drag Wonwoo to the kitchen sink, turned on the faucet, and ran cool water on the burn.

 

“What did you do that for? Look, you got burned. What if it makes a scar?”

 

“It’s  _ your _ fault. If you just listened to me in the first place…”

 

“I don’t understand. You said you wanted cream puffs, so I was making cream puffs for you. But then you wanted to cuddle, but I couldn’t just abandon the task I was given.”

 

“You don’t have to understand. Just do what I tell you.”

 

“But I was.”

 

“No, I told you to leave the dough alone, but you didn’t. It doesn’t matter what I said before. You weren’t listening to me at that moment.”

 

“So… I should only consider the most recent thing you say?”

 

“I guess you can put it that way.”

 

“Even if it means ignoring something you said before?”

 

“Now you’re starting to get it.”

 

“I… think I understand.”

 

“Good.”

 

Wonwoo smiled as he pulled his hand away from the running water to stroke Mingyu’s cheek. The water from his hand stuck to the robot’s face, but Mingyu didn’t resist. “Good,” he said again.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Mingyu was sitting on the couch, and Wonwoo was straddling him. Wonwoo wasn’t doing anything but looking at him, staring into his golden eyes. He heard the ticking of the clock as time continued to pass. Thy had been like this for over a minute, neither of them breaking eye contact. Wonwoo stared intently, while Mingyu looked at him expectantly.

 

Wonwoo recently found information online that you could fall in love with someone by maintaining eye contact for around 30 seconds, and he wanted to test the theory. He didn’t exactly think he needed it, but it was insurance. He just wanted to make sure that Mingyu loved him. After their extended eye contact, Wonwoo figured that it had been long enough. He took Mingyu’s face with both hands, and brought his own face closer so that they were less than a foot away from each other. There was just one more thing he wanted to test.

 

“Mingyu, repeat after me. I love you.”

 

“I… Error.”

 

“Say I love you.”

 

Mingyu blinked a few times.

 

“Error.”

 

Wonwoo frowned,, his brows furrowed in frustration. “Ok, then how about this? Repeat after me. I.”

 

“I.”

 

“Love.”

 

“Error.”

 

“Whose bright idea was it to program you like this? I wish I knew how to work electronics. That way I could fix your programming. I wonder if there’s a way around this What about ‘like’? You can say that, right? Repeat after me. I like you.”

 

“I like you.”

 

Wonwoo could feel like heart flutter at the words. It was the first time in a long time that he ever heard any sort of loving words directed at him by Mingyu. He smiled, forgetting all of  his frustrations.

 

“Say that again.”

 

“I like you.”

 

The boy giggled and then gave the robot a peck on the forehead.

 

“I like you too, Mingyu. It’s okay if that’s all we can say to each other. The feelings are there. I know it. It’s just the stupid company’s fault that you aren’t able to say it. I should file a complaint. Robots can’t love, my ass. They’re the ones forcing you guys to hold back your feelings, right? It’s okay, as long as we understand each other.”

 

“I’m sorry that you aren’t satisfied with me.”

 

“No no no, it’s not your fault.” The boy then gave the robot a quick kiss on the lips. “I understand.”

 

“Error.”

 

Wonwoo wrapped his arms around Mingyu and pressed their bodies together. Mingyu was much firmer than he remembered, but then he realized that his insides were made of metal. It didn’t stop him from hugging the robot tightly, even if it hurt a bit. Love was supposed to hurt anyways.

 

“I know.”

 

“Error.”

 

“I love you too, Mingyu”

 

“Error.”

 

“I know.”

 

“E-error.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

_ Crash _

 

Wonwoo looked up from his book from the noise. He saw a very wide-eyed Mingyu looking straight back at him.

 

“What was that?”

 

“I… I’m so sorry!”

 

Wonwoo calmly placed his bookmark in his book before setting it down on the coffee table. He stood up to walk to where Mingyu was, but stopped when he saw a shattered plate on the floor, along with scattered apples.

 

“Oh…”

 

“Don’t come any closer, you’ll hurt yourself! I’ll clean this up. I don’t know how this happened… I’m so sorry, really.”

 

“Hey, don’t stress over it, okay? It was going to happen some day. You’re Mingyu, after all. You wouldn’t be you if you didn’t break something here and there. Why don’t you go get the trash bin so we can clean this up?”

 

Wonwoo smiled at the robot before he continued to step closer to the mess on the floor. He bent down and started collecting the larger pieces with his bare hands. He was used to cleaning up messes like this, so he didn’t mind it.

 

Mingyu bent down where Wonwoo was, and then held the boy’s hands in order to stop them from moving. “ _ I’ll _ clean this.  _ You _ get the trash bin. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

 

“I’ll be careful.”

 

“No, actually, just wait here. I’ll take care of everything. Don’t move.”

 

Mingyu stood up and quickly walked to the kitchen to bring the trash bin to where Wonwoo was. He then took Wonwoo’s hands and guided them to the bin, and the boy let the pieces of ceramic drop. He carefully dusted Wonwoo’s hands with his own, and then stood up, bringing the boy with him to a spot five feet away from the mess.

 

“Go back to reading your book. I’ve got this.”

 

The robot rushed to swiftly pick up the broken pieces and place them in the trash. Wonwoo didn’t leave from where he was, and just watched as he worked. For some reason, he just wanted to watch, mesmerized by his movements. Mingyu was good at cleaning, and had gotten to the point where he looked elegant while doing chores that most people detested. Watching Mingyu work was more interesting than the book Wonwoo was reading previously.

 

When Mingyu finished picking up the larger pieces, he went to fetch the vacuum. Wonwoo noticed that he missed a piece right by Wonwoo’s feet. The boy dropped down to pick up up, just as Mingyu came back with the vacuum. Wonwoo had just grabbed the piece when Mingyu exclaimed, “Wait!”

 

The sudden yell startled Wonwoo so much that he squeezed the ceramic in his hand. The sharp edge sliced into his skin, and he could see his dark, red blood start to stain the broken edge that didn’t have a glaze. The cut didn’t seem that deep, but it still hurt.

 

“That’s why I told you not to move,” Mingyu said as he removed the bloodied ceramic from Wonwoo’s hand and wrapped his wound with a towel.

 

“This wouldn’t have happened if you didn’t shout.”

 

“I wouldn’t have shouted if you didn’t put yourself in danger.”

 

Mingyu slowly unwrapped the towel, but when he saw that the bleeding hadn’t stopped, he wrapped it again. 

 

“Look, you’re still bleeding.”

 

“It doesn’t hurt at all since you’re holding it.”

 

“How does that even make sense?”

 

“It’s the power of love.”

 

“...”

 

Mingyu stopped moving for a second. It almost seemed as though he was inanimate, completely frozen and motionless. Wonwoo couldn’t be sure if he was extremely deep in thought, or if something happened. Like he was broken, perhaps. Wonwoo waved his hand in front of the robot’s face, worried. When Mingyu didn’t respond, he decided to call out his name.

 

“Mingyu?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Is there something wrong?”

 

“No, why?”

 

Wonwoo hesitated.

 

“I don’t know. It looked like you were… nevermind. If you say so, then I’m probably overthinking it.”

 

“Uh, by the way... I think we should get this treated.”

 

“It’s not that deep. It should be fine.”

 

“Are you sure? I don’t want it to become an ugly scar.”

 

“I don’t care if it does. I don’t need to impress anybody now that you’re around.”

 

“I don’t understand.”

 

“It just means that you’re all that matters to me.”

 

“Oh.”

 

Wonwoo chuckled. “Oh? That’s a pretty weak response.”

 

“I just… don’t know what to say.”

 

“I would think that most people in our shoes would say something similar back. You know, how I matter most to you, too, or something. But I know that it’s hard for you to voice it, so I’ll let you go.”

 

“Ah… okay.”

 

Wonwoo smiled and leaned in close to Mingyu’s face.

 

“I love you. Don’t go anywhere this time.You’ll be safe as long as you stay here.”

 

He freed his injured hand from the robot’s grasp, and then hugged him tightly. He could feel Mingyu’s jaw open and close slightly in a rhythmic manner, but no words came out for a few seconds. When the words finally came out, his smile grew wider, since it meant that Mingyu was trying to say the words back.

 

“Errr...or”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

A shrill ringing of his cell phone pulled Wonwoo from his sleep. He stretched his hand toward the dresser and searched for the phone without opening his eyes. When his hand found the vibrating piece of metal, he brought it to his face, opening an eye to make sure he was pressing the right button. He held the phone to his ear and with a raspy voice and said, “Hello?”

 

“Hello, this is the Pledis Robotics company, and we are calling to notify you that we have been alerted by your robot that it is malfunctioning. As stated in your warranty, we will be able to fix it before returning it to you. However, you should be noted that this malfunction can be dangerous, so we would like to fix it as soon as possible.”

 

There were so many words to process so early in the morning, He had to take a few moments to let the words register into his head.

 

“Malfunction? What do you mean? What kind of malfunction?”

 

“Based on the data sent to us, it’s a problem with its programming. Robots are naturally much stronger than humans, so they are programmed to inhibit their strength. This inhibitor seems to have some sort of error, and that could potentially lead to damage to you or your belongings.”

 

“So you’re saying he’s… stronger?”

 

“Yes, and it could be dangerous if we don’t fix it.”

 

“Oh… is there anything else?”

 

“Nothing dangerous, but it does seem that there are other problems. We can’t confirm anything without observation, but there are likely motor control problems. Have you ever noticed your robot breaking things? Or just making mistakes in general?”

 

Wonwoo thought about the way Mingyu behaved recently. Nothing was wrong. He was more clumsy than before, but that was normal. He was only reverting to the way he was before he became a robot.

 

“There’s nothing wrong with him. I don’t think you need to fix anything.”

 

“Oh, no we must. The robot poses a potential danger, and we cannot overlook that. We will send someone over later today to look into the problem.”

 

“No, it’s fine. Don’t come. There’s nothing wrong, I swear. I haven’t seen him break anything.”

 

“Sir, it’s protocol. We have to look into it. Even if there’s nothing wrong, it’s against the law for us to ignore this. It shouldn’t take that long.”

 

“... Does it have to be today?”

 

“Yes, sir. We want to deal with this as soon as possible.”

 

“What time will you be coming?”

 

“We should arrive sometime between 1-3pm. If you’re busy, you can let your robot answer the door.”

 

“So I can’t refuse?”

 

“I’m sorry, but no. We must adhere to the law. Please make sure someone will be there to answer the door when we arrives, or you may face charges from the government.”

 

“... I understand.”

 

“Thank you for again for shopping with us at Pledis Robotics. We hope you have a nice day.”

 

Wonwoo pulled the phone away from his ear to press the end button. He didn’t want them to come. The company was going to change Mingyu, even though Wonwoo had just gotten him perfect. Or worse, they might take him away.

 

_ No. _

 

He couldn’t let them take Mingyu away. Not again. But what could he do to prevent that? They were coming in a few hours. What could he do to make sure Mingyu would stay with him forever?

 

_ We have to run away. _

 

He jumped up out of bed, all of his drowsiness gone. He didn’t have time to waste. He ran out to the living room, where Mingyu was, already up and charged.

 

“Mingyu, we have to go,  _ now _ .”

 

The robot seemed confused, but got up.

 

“Go? G-go where?”

 

“Out. Anywhere but here.”

 

“But I-”

 

“Mingyu, remember what I told you before. Listen to the last words I say. We have to leave.”

 

“O-okay.”

 

“Let’s go.”

 

Wonwoo grabbed Mingyu’s wrist and lead him out of the apartment, neither of them dressed to go out, but neither of them paying attention to the stares they were receiving from the strangers they walked by. Wonwoo didn’t think to take any of his belongings, so he was without his wallet and phone. All he had were the clothes on his back, and Mingyu. 

 

But that was all he needed.

 

At first he walked briskly, dragging the robot behind him. But he felt like he wasn’t going anywhere. His feet were clearly moving, but he felt as if they were staying in the same place, almost as if they were in a dream. He sped up, and Mingyu followed, not having any trouble with the pace. But it still wasn’t fast enough. He quickened the pace yet again to a light jog, but even then he felt the need to go faster. And so, he ran. Mingyu adjusted his speed to match Wonwoo, and they were both running as fast as Wonwoo could move his legs. They had to avoid the pedestrians who were in their way, but every so often, Wonwoo stumbled when his shoulder brushed against someone when couldn’t avoid them completely in time.

 

The two ran, crossing street after street, when Wonwoo realized that this wouldn’t do. They had to run away from the city. Or else, the robotics company might find them. But which direction was the way out?

 

He slowed down to a stop, his lungs burning and his throat parched, and he scanned his surroundings. He noticed that there was a mountain to the right of them. Though it was far, it was the safest way to go. He started dashing once again, still holding onto Mingyu’s wrist. He looked back once to make sure that the robot was still there, which he was. Of course he was. 

 

Mingyu would follow Wonwoo wherever he went, even if it was to the ends of the earth.

 

Wonwoo continued running towards the mountains, but they were so much farther than he expected them to be. He probably never ran so much in his life, but he never needed to either. Unfortunately, even with as much will as he had at that moment, he was only human, and he was feeling the fatigue catch up to his body after the initial adrenaline rush was fading. He still needed to run, but his body wouldn’t listen. 

 

He slowed down, but didn’t stop. He trudged on by walking, his breath ragged and heavy. He had to get to the mountains. He had to. But his legs were wobbling from exhaustion, and his heart felt like it was going to explode. He unwillingly dropped to his knees, finally letting go of Mingyu. His head drooped, and it was hard for him to find the strength to lift it up. Mingyu knelt beside him.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Mingyu, how are you feeling?”

 

“I feel f-fine. But how are… you? I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to keep running like this.”

 

“We have to get to the mountains. It’s where we’ll be safe.”

 

The mountains? Do you… know how far that is? W-were you planning on running the whole way… there?”

 

“Do you have a better idea?”

 

“I think it would be smarter if I carried you. It doesn’t look like… you can go on any farther.”

 

Wonwoo turned towards Mingyu with amazement. “Wow, why didn’t I think of that before?”

 

“I’ll take that as a yes?”

 

Wonwoo held out his arms for Mingyu to take. “Yes. Carry me.”

 

Mingyu lifted the boy up so he could stand on his own two feet before turning around and bending over. Wonwoo lightly hopped onto the robot’s back, and Mingyu quickly secured his hold on the boy before moving forward.

 

“Do you want me to run?”

 

“Can you?”

 

“I can but it would be uncomfortable for you.”

 

“Don’t worry about me. We have to get out of here.”

 

“Okay, hold on tight then.”

 

And so, Mingyu ran. He ran gently and smoothly, but quickly. The pace was roughly at what they were at before when they were both on the ground.

 

“Hey Mingyu, how long you you think it’ll take to get there?”

 

“At the pace we’re going? I would say by the evening.”

 

“Can you make it until then? Don’t you need to take a break?”

 

“I have a lot more endurance than you think.”

 

“Do you? Then can you go faster?”

 

“If that’s what you want.”

 

Mingyu increased his pace gradually, and came to a speed Wonwoo could compare to being on a bike. The boy felt his body bouncing up and down, but knew that Mingyu was purposely running so that the robot would take most of the shock from the impact of his feet on the ground. It was touching that Mingyu would burden his own body so that Wonwoo wouldn’t have to suffer so much.

 

The sun had moved a great distance across the sky by the time they reached the edge of the city, but it wasn’t yet evening. Wonwoo ignored his body’s constant reminders for food and water, because he couldn’t turn back now. Mingyu started trudging on the dirt and grass, stepping away from concrete and gravel.

 

“How far do you want to go?”

 

“As far as possible. Far enough so that they can never find us.”

 

“Who? So that w-who can never find u-us?”

 

“Pledis.”

 

“Why?”

 

“They want to separate us.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because you’re not acting the way they want you to. They don’t like that you’re reverting to your old self.”

 

“Old self?”

 

“Yeah, from before you were a robot.”

 

“From b-before I was…”

 

“By the way, are you okay? You keep stuttering. Are you tired?”

 

“No, I’m… not tired.”

 

Wonwoo recalled his conversation with the representative from Pledis. He mentally listed some of the problems that they detected, but Wonwoo couldn’t quite remember them all. Was Mingyu’s speech problems a side effect of his program malfunction?

 

“Mingyu, put me down. Let’s walk together, okay?”

 

The robot did as he asked, and the two walked further into the natural grounds. Wonwoo slipped his hand into Mingyu’s and clasped it tightly. 

 

“I should have asked before, but you don’t happen to come with a tracking device, do you?”

 

“No, that would v-violate customer’s privacy. I’m p-programmed to send m-my performance data, not my location.”

 

“Okay, good.”

 

Wonwoo’s stomach grumbled loudly as the skies started turning an orange hue. He hadn’t eaten anything that day since he was in such a hurry to escape. But they couldn’t go back, because the Pledis Robotics Company would be waiting for them. If they noticed Mingyu’s speech impediment, there was no way they would let it slide. If worse came to worst, it was possible that they wouldn’t just tamper with Mingyu’s hardware and programming, but they might scrap him. Wonwoo could tell that they didn’t understand Mingyu’s value.

 

But that was okay, since Wonwoo did.

 

“Wonwoo, don’t… you n-need to eat?”

 

“No.”

 

“Your stomach says otherwise.”

 

“I’m fine. I don’t need anything. I only need you.”

 

“I won’t be able to fill your belly.”

 

“Who needs their belly filled when their heart is full?”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Wonwoo didn’t know how long it had been since they arrived in the mountains. After the first day, time wasn’t something he paid much attention to. Whether one day had passed, or three, he wasn’t sure. When all he did was sit on the ground beside Mingyu and stare off into the distance, he felt isolated from time. His body and mind felt numb, and his throat was so dry that it was hard for him to speak. Mingyu’s speech got progressively worse, and even his body didn’t move as smoothly as before. Both Wonwoo and Mingyu’s bodies were deteriorating, out where no one would find them. It was just the two of them, alone in their own world.

 

That was the way Wonwoo wanted it.

 

They were finally free from everything. It didn’t matter that Wonwoo felt himself weakening, or that he was running out of words to say. It didn’t matter that his body was hurting from head to toe, inside and out. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t move much more than his arms, or that the light started to hurt his eyes to the point that he had to constantly keep his eyes shut.

 

He could only smile as he fell to his side, his head landing on Mingyu’s solid lap. Mingyu started patting Wonwoo’s head in a slow, rhythmic manner. It was quiet where they were, besides the birds that were singing. Everything was peaceful. Wonwoo couldn’t remember a time where he was more comfortable than this.

 

It was still daytime, since the sun was still out. Wonwoo could feel a wave of drowsiness wash over his body, and as Mingyu continued to stroke his head, he could feel his body being lulled to sleep. The call of the birds were getting quieter, and his breaths were becoming shorter. He felt his consciousness slipping away. The last thing he remembered was being happy. This was all he wanted, and all he asked for.

 

To be with Mingyu forever.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Forever.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


And ever.

 


End file.
